Or, welcome to my low-maintenance heck.

Los Angeles County has paid private lawyers nearly $13,000 to pursue $1,004 in debt owed by a Compton woman for time her 16-year-old granddaughter was held in a juvenile probation camp, officials acknowledged today.

The debt was still being pursued this week, county counsel said, despite a moratorium on such billing declared last month. The moratorium was called by probation chief Robert Taylor after The Times and children’s advocates raised serious questions about his department’s billing practices.

Only in government would a negative 110% return on investment be considered logical.

Anyone care to bet that the lawyers responsible for this irresponsible billing are somehow connected to an official in the County government?